Backward parking has 'learning curve'

A row of reverse diagonal parking spaces along North Main Avenue. The city is using North Main as a test spot for the parking scheme, which is safer for cyclists but causes some concern for drivers.(Photo: John Hult/Argus Leader Media)Buy Photo

To the average South Dakota driver, parking on a short stretch of North Main Avenue looks backwards.

Last month, the spaces on the east side of Main from Third Street to West McClellan Street were painted into a reverse diagonal scheme, with a bike lane right painted in right next to them.

Reverse diagonal spaces have caught on in some cities as a safety feature meant to slow down traffic, help drivers and cyclists see one another and make it easier for shoppers to load their haul into their trunk.

But they force drivers to back into spaces, and the addition of a bike lane has further narrowed the roadway on the uptown hill.

“Reverse diagonal parking is a nightmare. It requires above average skill, and I think the lane markings are less than precise,” said John Stratman, who reached out to Argus Leader Media for an explanation.

The bike lane’s proximity to the parking spaces worries him, too.

“All the sharrows I’ve seen are on the other side of the road,” he said.

Backers of the project have spent a lot of time explaining it over the past few months. The city’s principal traffic engineer, Heath Hoftiezer, has heard several questions similar to Stratman’s.

“We’ve gotten some positive responses from people, but it is a change, so we've gotten some negative feedback,” Hoftiezer said. “Some people just don’t like the narrower driving lane, some other people are worried about drivers not grasping how to back into the spots.”

The concept of reverse diagonal as a safety feature stems from visibility, Hoftiezer said. Drivers need to check more sight lines before backing in, and they can see if there’s a cyclist or other vehicle coming as they pull out.

The idea is to avoid the difficulties faced by drivers who back out of spaces on busy roads like Phillips Avenue.

Des Moines, Iowa, Austin, Texas, Indianapolis, Indiana and Salt Lake City, Utah have added reverse diagonal or “head-out angle” parking in recent years, and Seattle – a city with a massive bike commuting population – has hundreds of blocks worth.

The city of Sioux Falls wrote reverse angle parking to its design standards eight years ago, Hoftiezer said, but their emergence on Main Avenue came at the behest of Zach DeBoer, owner of Exposure Gallery and Studios.

The Uptown business owner drew up a plan for North Main and tested it last year during a Food Truck Friday event using duct tape to mark off the spots. He took his idea to the city, then to Main Avenue business owners – 80 percent signed off on it – then back to the city council.

With the 80 percent approval for property owners and slight changes to his design, the council gave the go-ahead.

Aside from the sight line benefits, slowing down traffic on the hill will be a major benefit, DeBoer said. The posted speed limits – 25 miles per hour on one end and 30 at the other – are often overlooked.

“There are kids in the apartments on the hill,” DeBoer said. “We’re slowing down the traffic and increasing the safety for everyone.”

DeBoer admits there’s a learning curve, however.

“It’s not something any of us in in South Dakota were taught in driver’s education, but it’s something we can all learn,” DeBoer said.

Thadeus Giedd, operations coordinator for The Bakery workspace on North Main, says it “has been a hurdle to comprehend” for some drivers, while others have caught on more quickly.

“Most grasp the concept and park well,” Giedd said.

The main problem he sees is the potential for drivers to pull into the spaces from the southbound lanes, while the spaces are designed for reverse parking from the north.

Stratman questions the need for the change and worries about potential problems.

Hoftiezer hopes to hear from residents who park on North Main, on safety, but also on the ease of loading up after a shopping trip.

“We’re going to be looking for feedback from the public on this,” Hoftiezer said. “A lot of the communities that have done are fairly happy.”

The Main Avenue “road diet,” which trimmed a lane from Main downtown, also saw pushback for slowing down traffic when it began in 2014.

The pedestrian-focused plan was made permanent last year and finalized this year. A ribbon-cutting for the completed project is set to take place on Monday.

John Hult is the Reader's Watchdog reporter for Argus Leader Media. Contact him with questions and concerns at 605-331-2301, 605-370-8617. You can tweet him @ArgusJHultor find him on Facebook at Facebook.com/ArgusReadersWatchdog.